Home > Consumer Reviews > Zenith XBS344 Progressive Scan DVD-VCR Home Theater System (Silver)

Just bought this system. Sound quality is great, almost comparable with Sony but a lot less expensive. When I first used the unit, I thought the sound was not as loud as I was expecting (I was expecting it to cause my whole room to vibrate), but learned from the manual that you can add 6dB more per speaker. When I did that, it was awesome, though I might not be able to always set it to maximum since I live in apartment.

I tested FM/AM Radios, DVD, VCR. All work great. The only thing I wish Zenith could have changed is the remote. It's not universal so I need to have the remote of my TV too to watch movie.

I just recently started thinking about getting a DVD/VCR and a home theater system. Of course I turned to Amazon.com first.My favorite place to shop online. I found just what I was looking for in the price range I wanted to spend.
I have had the system for one week now and am very pleased. I am in the 'over 50 club' and just wanted quality sound when listening to CD's, DVD's and Video's. This fits the bill.
I have seen various comments about setup time and setup being a challange. I'm new to all of this but it was not difficult at all.
I especially like how you can adjust each speaker for db's and for distance. It is also very clear how you are to best arrange them physically for the best sound. It takes a while to get used to the remotes if you are not real familiar with their use, but by the end of the second day of use - I had it down pretty well.
In the price range I doubt you could find a better deal.

I am currently searching for a new system to replace the Zenith XBS344, and I was surprised to see that it is still on the market. I was so excited with the system when I first bought it, and for a while, everything worked perfectly. About two months after I bought it, something happened that seemed minor at the time, but I should have suspected that it would develop into a bigger problem. When I inserted a DVD, the unit could not read it, and I got a message saying there was a "disc error." The DVD was automatically ejected, and I had to re-insert it. After a couple of attempts, the player read the DVD just fine.

Over the next few months, I occasionally had similar occurrences, but again, it did not seem like a big deal. Then one day, I sat there for over an hour trying to get the player to accept a DVD that had no scratches or fingerprints on the back of it. Of course, by this point, the warranty had expired. This problem became a semi-regular occurrence, so I bought a DVD cleaner disc. I used the cleaning cycle several times, but it did not make any difference. What I discovered, however, is that the DVD side does not work very well if a VCR tape is in the player as well. Therefore, I started ejecting videotapes whenever I wanted to watch a DVD, which meant that I could not record a TV show while watching a DVD. After a while, even this solution did not seem to work.

Now, the problem is even greater in that DVDs sometimes skip or get stuck, even if it is a brand new DVD. The machine makes this sluggish noise, and I suspect that the problem is with the laser that reads the discs. I have had this unit for almost two years (I bought it in August 2003), and I have finally given up on it. I should have listened to the advice of the salesperson at [a familiar electronic chain store], who advised me not to be tempted by the low price.

I have never had problems with the rest of the system, just the DVD player. The VCR component, including programmable recording, is fine, as is the stereo receiver. The speakers are nice.

I am so disappointed with this system because of the DVD problem, and I just wish I had been more concerned about that initial incident, which happened when the unit was still under warranty. My advice would be to shop around for another brand/model. That is what I am doing right now.

I just picked up this unit for a 5.1 surround sound system in my bedroom.

The stereo, and VHS work great, but the DVD player is useless. The unit plays audio CD's just fine, (both regular CD's and burned MP3 discs) but everytime I insert a DVD movie, it attempts to read for two or three minutes, then gives me a DISC ERR message. This phenomenon happens 100% of the time, regardless of the movie I insert. (I've tried several retail DVD's and a few burned DVD's)

Luckily I only purchased this setup 2 days ago, so it's going back! I wish I had read the other review of this product documenting the same problem, and had heeded their warning.